Meghan Markle and Prince Harry mystery deepens as new photos surface
No one can explain why Meghan Markle isn’t in Germany with Prince Harry and new photos of her add even more mystery to the situation.
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This is the tale of two Range Rovers. Both black. Both sleek. And both probably costing more than $200,000 a piece.
One of these big gas-guzzlers was responsible for depositing Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex at the Dusseldörf town hall over the weekend and in front of a waiting, cheering crowd 500-people strong.
And the other was his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, 9000 kilometres away in California, where she was snapped by a paparazzo making her way through the drive-through at legendary burger chain In-N-Out, behind the wheel of her own Range Rover.
The contrast between these two instances – of charitable service versus fast-food indulgence; of Germany versus California; of on-duty duke versus off-duty duchess – could not be greater if this situation had been plotted out by the now out-of-work writers of The Crown.
And aye, there’s the rub.
If the Games were meant to represent a reputational reset for the beleaguered Sussexes, whose US approval numbers have tanked faster than the Exxon Valdez in the past year, and who have been unable to shake rumours about their marriage, then they have, so far, totally struck out.
Not only has a new report cast doubt on whether the duchess will go to Germany at all to do a spot wifely supporting, but these new images of her have the makings of a PR mess. While Harry is in Dusseldörf, displaying all the pep of a man on his fourth Red Bull and espresso, hugging, charming and chatting with swathes of the Invictus community, here we have Meghan back on the West Coast doing a very good impression of someone angling for a guest spot as a Real Housewife.
That the Duchess of Sussex has yet to make it to Germany to play any part in the hugely successful Games but is merrily at home doing what looks like West Coast lady of leisure stuff? Not great. Not great at all.
The bigger question here, and what no one can quite explain is, why the 42-year-old remains at home in Montecito.
When last year’s Games kicked off in The Hague, Meghan seemed to be an ever present figure for the first few days, rolling out changes of designer clothing as she went from event to function to stage. It was the duchess who emotionally welcomed her husband to the stage to give his opening speech, saying “I could not love and respect him more and I know that all of you feel the same … Please welcome my incredible husband, Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex.”
Considering the couple’s 2022 Invictus double act, we can confidently use the adjective “gushing,” a win for diehard romantics everywhere.
The Duchess of Sussex might have worn nearly half a Range Rover worth of designer goodies, rolling out an estimated $70,000 of new pieces, but she beamed and beamed some more as she played her part as one half of the Sussex sandwich. Even in the brief glimpses of the now 42-year-old an eagle-eyed view can spy of her in Heart of Invictus, Harry’s Netflix doco about the Games, the mother-of-two can be seen listening intently in behind-the-scenes planning meetings and doing her supportive partner bit.
So what the dickens is going on this year?
When Harry landed in Dusseldörf for the event’s kick off over the weekend, it was his lonesome, having made a pit stop in London for the WellChild Awards solo too. Previously, it had been believed that the duchess would join Aitch in Germany for the end of the Games, which seemed a tad odd of a choice but still. She was going.
As the Telegraph’s Victoria Ward reported earlier this month, “Meghan will join him a few days later and they will appear together at various events throughout the week, as well as the closing ceremony.”
Rightio then, except that now a source has popped up to speak to the Mail, revealing that “it’s now unclear if she will attend the event.”
Adding further mystery to this situation is that the former Suits star had initially appeared on the event’s original itinerary, with her scheduled to take to stage during the closing ceremony where she would “host [an] intimate and moving glimpse into the extraordinary journeys of the Invictus Games competitors.”
However, Meghan’s name has since been removed from the website with presenter Hadnet Tesfai now set to appear instead. A source has told the Mail that the original schedule had been “uploaded in error.”
Confused? Silently mouthing the world ‘huh’ at your screen? You’re not alone.
And things are about to get odder still.
Earlier this month, the Telegraph reported that the absence of Meghan at the Game’s launch was due to “childcare arrangements,” but that’s a claim that is hard to swallow. Not only do the Sussexes obviously have staff but the family has the duchess’ mother Doria Ragland on hand too. Also, the Sussexes did not seem to have any issues leaving their little ones, Prince Archie, four, and Princess Lillibet, two, back in California for last year’s Games.
So let’s make that a double ‘huh.’
If Meghan was not to go at all to the Games, it would be tantamount to Kate, the Princess of Wales skipping out on the coronation to paint her nails with sister Pippa. A truly rotten look indeed and one that no amount of sources bemoaning their supposed childcare trouble could mitigate.
Meghan, of course, may well jet off to Germany yet but even so, Tuesday’s new shots of her indulging a spot of greasy food are a dismal look. While Harry is eagerly supporting the men, women and families who carry the scars of military service, his wife is back home pootling around in her Range Rover, enjoying a side of jalapeños.
This is hardly quite the promise of “service is universal,” as the couple claimed in a tetchy statement back in 2021.
The contrasting photos, of Harry in Sir Hug-a-thon mode and busily reminding the royal family what they lost, and of Meghan in enormous Chanel sunglasses enjoying a French fries fix (I’m guessing) are worlds apart.
This situation, of the Sussexes being on the opposite sides of the world pursuing separate paths, will obviously do nothing to dampen lingering speculation and whispers about the state of their marriage.
Nor will this do much to help their faltering brand, coming off the back of controversy (the “near catastrophic” car chase that maybe wasn’t); parting ways with Spotify (and being labelled “f***ing grifters”); and Harry’s Heart doco proving to be another streaming flop-a-roony (meaning of their three series so far for Netflix, two have tanked).
They are far from popular in the United States, based on polling done by Redfield and Wilson for Newsweek with Meghan disliked by more Americans than liked, and have no confirmed book, podcast or TV show projects in the pipeline right now.
This week’s Games should have been just what the (spin) doctor ordered: It should have been a perfect hit of feel-good Harry’n’Meghan press and the world being reminded of how unbeatable the couple can be at their particular brand of coupled-up do goodery. We should be in the midst of the Sussex machine purring to life and we should be witnessing their takeover of social media, the press and renewing their purchase on our collective psyches.
And instead? For some reason I’ve just got a sudden hankering for a double cheeseburger.
Daniela Elser is writer, editor and a royal commentator with more than 15 years’ experience working with a number of Australia’s leading media titles.
Originally published as Meghan Markle and Prince Harry mystery deepens as new photos surface
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